Dairy-Free Birthday Cakes

Birthdays are special occasions that are meant to be celebrated, and nothing says celebration quite like a cake. These dairy-free cake recipes will give you some ideas for your dairy-free birthday celebration, whether you're baking a cake for someone with lactose intolerance or another allergy or alternative diet.

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Basic Yellow Cake

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This basic yellow cake is bright and beautiful between layers of whatever dairy-free frosting suits the birthday guy or gal's palette. Although this recipe contains eggs, feel free to ​substitute 1/3 cup Egg Replacer combined with 1/3 cup hot water for a vegan variation.​

Carrot Cake

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A cake that has carrots in it must be healthy, right? Well, this dairy-free carrot cake, like most carrot cakes, is still incredibly rich, but, prepared with heart-healthy canola oil, egg whites, and ground walnuts, it is significantly lower in cholesterol and saturated fats than traditional carrot cake recipes that contain loads of butter and egg yolks. Combined with this easy-to-make Dairy-Free Cream Cheese Frosting, no one will know that this cake is lactose-free!

Dairy-Free and Vegan Cheesecakes

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Although a cheesecake isn't a traditional birthday cake, per se, a cheesecake--and especially a cheeseless cheesecake--is pretty delicious. It's true: nothing about a traditional cheesecake is dairy-free or vegan, from the cream cheese to the sour cream to the eggs to the butter in the crust. But, for those of use who love cheesecake but can't do the dairy due to allergies or dietary preference, there are ways to make a cheeseless and eggless cheesecake delicious. From classics like...MORE plain cheesecake and chocolate to more dressed up versions like banana cream and mint chocolate chip, you'll find fabulous alternatives to dairy-laden cakes in this collection of Dairy-Free and Vegan Cheesecakes.

Devils Food Cake

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Dairy-free and egg-free, this Vegan Devils Food Cake is a sinlessly rich and decadent delight that you can feel good about! Layered with a homemade chocolate mousse and topped with vegan ganache, this is three times the chocolatey celebration!

Flourless Chocolate Cake

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This gluten-free and dairy-free cake is so rich, you'd never know that it was anything but a butter-and-flour-laden classic. Topped with vegan dark chocolate ganache, this cake is a classy yet simple affair.

Moist Chocolate Cake

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This super-easy lactose-free chocolate cake recipe is one of those that you'll come back to again and again. Great for everything from kids' birthday parties, school parties, dinner parties, or everyday indulgences, you'll like this cake even if you're not allergic to dairy or lactose intolerant!

Rich Chocolate Cake

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This Rich Chocolate Cake Recipe is dairy-free and soy-free, which makes it perfect for kids' parties where there are likely to be multiple allergies present. (This recipe does use eggs, however, so for egg-free or vegan birthdays, simply use 1/3 cup Egg Replacer whipped with 1/3 cup warm water to stand in for the eggs.) Layered with the dairy-free frosting of your choice, this chocolate indulgence takes the allergy-free cake!

Vegan Carrot Cake

Vegan Chocolate Cake

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Significantly lower in fat that most chocolate cake recipes, this vegan chocolate cake uses tofu to substitute for the eggs and almost all of the fat, but the result is still a moist, casein-free chocolatey delight!